The curtains came down on
the Sixth South-South Cooperation Workshop in Maputo Mozambique on 8 August 2014.

In his closing remarks on behalf of IFAD, Mr Cheik Sourang - Strategy and Knowledge
Management in IFAD, recognised the presence of his IFAD colleagues: Sun Yinhong - China, Robson
Mutandi - Ethiopia, Haingo Rakotondratsima - Madagascar, and Ahmed Subahi - Sudan.
He hoped the workshop was a worthwhile experience for all the participants. He
mentioned that triangular south-south cooperation involves the government,
private sector, and producers in a public private producer partnership which IFAD is championing. He mentioned that the SSC intervention for
IFAD is being championed at three levels: (i) at country level, SSC is being linked
to the country level engagement and knowledge management; (ii) at corporate
level, IFAD is exploring opportunities and additional funding instruments such as
trust funds for
the south-south agenda to complement the grants and loans programmes; and (iii) at the global level, IFAD has facilitated policy discussion on the scaling up agenda to meet the MDGs,
etc. He thanked Mozambique and China for sharing experiences. He indicated that
the best of SSC is yet to come. He mentioned that IFAD will undertake a survey to get feedback from participants on ways to improve the SSC.

In his closing remarks, Mr Antonio Limbāo - Vice Minister of
Agriculture, Mozambique on behalf of Minister of Planning and development, expressed
his appreciation by saying, “as we come
to the end of the sixth SSC workshop, it was a pleasure to host you in
Mozambique to discuss the SSC experience together”. He believed that the SSC in
agricultural development and especially in the rice technology transfer in
Mozambique is contributing to poverty reduction and increase of revenue to the
farmers. The workshop was an opportunity to share experiences on other Chinese
interventions in other African countries and the linkage with IFAD.In Mozambique the SSC initiatives is linked
to the government strategies especially in rural development and poverty
reduction. The technological transfer can be of value to African countries to
address the challenges facing the small holder farmers. On behalf of the government of Mozambique and Gaza province
that facilitated this international workshop he wished the participants safe travel to their respective countries.

China-Moz SSC eggplant demo at technical centre

In his closing remarks, Mr Zhang Zhengwei - Representative of
China in IFAD Executive Board thanked the co-host Mozambique, IFAD and China
Poverty Reduction Centre for organizing this important workshop. He indicated
that China will always support SSC. He mentioned that China started SSC though bilateral
channels but is now exploring multilateral channels through agencies like IFAD.
He agreed with the need to address country’s real demand and therefore ownership
is an important ingredient in the success of the SSC.China will continue to improve the
effectiveness and efficiency of the SSC. The idea by IFAD to hold the 6th
workshop in Africa was a big step for China, but there is still room for further
innovation, for example, combine enterprise
promotion and agricultural development. He mentioned that the workshop approach of thematic discussions and field visits was a
good approach and will continue to be used. China is willing to share its own
experience but as a new developed country it shares similar challenges as
developing countries. Therefore there is room to learn from each other. He indicated that
IFAD’s uniqueness can play a profound role in promoting SSC. He wished the
participants safe return to their countries and declared the Sixth South-South
Cooperation workshop officially closed.

Feedback from Participants

Participants
were impressed with the rice technology transfer programme as demand driven
given the shortfall of the domestic supply of rice. The Chinese in the SSC
tried to solveit by aligning it toMozambique existing agricultural policy programme

The rice technologies transfer focuses
onfood security and inclusiveness in
that it involves the young agroprenuers extension workers, and private
sector partners

The importance of the multiservice
extension centrein training and
learning as well as technology demonstration

Participants appreciated the SSC practical
learning approach rather than theoretical approachesand felt itshould be replicated in Africa for the benefit of farmers

One striking problem rural-urban migration
where the young are leaving the old in the rural area to do agriculture.
Chinaaddressed these issues through
policies

Participants highlighted the need to
introduce knowledge management into the SSC to enable the documentation and a
repository of the knowledge generated which is important for skills transfer
for the benefit of the scientist and farmers

There is need for a cultural centre to address
the cross cultural issues and language barriers for the smooth transfer of the
technologies.

About IFAD

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) invests in rural people, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition and strengthen resilience. Since 1978, we have provided grants and low-interest loans to programmes and projects that have reached several hundred million people. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency based in Rome – the UN’s food and agriculture hub.

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The designations employed and the presentation of material in this blog do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IFAD concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The designations “developed” and “developing” countries are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgement about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process.